Gas leak at MTTC prompts precautionary evacuation

A gas leak prompted the evacuation of the Manufacturing Training and Technology Center (MTTC) building at 800 Bradbury on UNM’s south campus Thursday. UNM’s police department evacuated MTTC and two adjacent buildings for a couple of hours midday while an Albuquerque Fire Department Hazardous Materials crew worked inside to contain the problem and ventilate the area.

MTTC houses academic and private companies. The MTTC cleanroom is a prototyping and teaching laboratory. It houses labs, training areas, offices and a clean room, where the problem occurred. A sensory device in the cleanroom detected the leak around 11 a.m. and alerted the police and fire departments.

The leak was contained within the cleanroom, which has its own ventilation and scrubber systems, so the rest of the building was not affected. As a precaution, police evacuated about 100 occupants and visitors from MTTC and nearby buildings at 801 and 851 University Blvd., SE. Officers set up a perimeter to keep the area secure. AFD checked the entire building before clearing it for reentry.

Those responding to the call say the alert system worked well and no one was in danger. After the Hazmat crew gave the all clear, workers returned to the building after 1 p.m.